Activity #5 (and more info on Activity #4)

So now your students are writing simple melodies. Hopefully you have allowed lots of creative freedom. If you students wanted their melodies to end on the second scale degree (which they probably haven't learned about yet) that is fine. They will eventually notice which pitches sound the best for beginning and ending. You may have to prompt them a little with questions like "What did you like about this one?" or " What sounded funny about this melody?" Be sure to always start with the positive questions no matter how terrible a student's work may sound. Another variation of this is "Did you like this melody?.... WHY?"

While Activity #4 originally just involved getting your students to be creative melodically, as they become more comfortable, try to include more exploration of melodies. I've already mentioned beginng and ending pitches. This is directly related to the beginning and ending pitches, melodic shape (pitch-wise and dynamic-wise). Discuss different phrase lengths (even or odd number of measures... ). Once they seem to be catching on, you may want to introduce periods or perhaps binary form.

Activity #5 - More Phrases and Form

Teaching form in a meaningful way is not as difficult as it sometimes seems. Have your students come up with an original phrase. Then let them compose another phrase that sounds like it belongs after the original phrase. Let the class play the two phrases (one followed by the other) and discuss their thoughts on the result. If they have not already mentioned it, try to guide the discussion towards ending the second phrase so that it sounds like it could lead in to the first phrase.

Once your class has re-written the second phrase, try it at different placements (ABAA, AABA, ABA, etc.) and let you students decide which order(s) they like (and WHY). This is a great introduction to form. Notice that at no point have I suggested that you tell your students what to write. Let them experiment... see what they think sounds the best. Meanwhile you can try to guide them towards a composition that ends on tonic (or whatever you want.. but DO NOT force it).

This activity can take place as soon as you students are capable of playing a few notes (you have everything you need between tonic and dominant), but high school students will enjoy this as well. It may take some time, but your kids will learn a lot from these activites. I don't know if I've mentioned it, but these activites are not intended to be full lessons. You only need to spend 5-10 minutes a day, but use them daily if possible. If you feel like spending an entire class period on writing phrases... by all means, do it.

Interesting Articles

Here are some journal articles related to viewing composition as a tool for teaching music rather than as a burden. Read them. They include different approaches and you may find them helpful.



Ginocchio, J. (2003). Making composition work in your music program. Music Educators Journal, 90(1).

Snyder, D. (2001). The national standards in junior high band rehearsals. Teaching Music, 8(6).

Tengowski, R. and Tweed, J. (1994). Your band can compose, too. Teaching Music, 90(1).

Activity #4

Once again, Activity #4 builds upon the previous activities (this will be the trend). Go through the process of Activity #3, but instead of assigning percussion instruments to all of the parts, assign one pitch to one of the parts. This allows your wind players to participate within their comfort zone (reminder: This activity involves the use of horns, so it should be used once your students are capable of making a sound on their instruments). This single pitch will also provide you with unlimited exercises to reinforce tone and articulation. As the students progress, you may want to turn one of the parts into a melody based on the pitches that the students are capable of playing. While you must write the initial melodies, it is extremely important that you quickly give the students control of what is written. Again, MAKE THEM EXPLAIN THEIR DECISIONS! (have I stressed that enough yet??) Work with your students so that they learn basic concepts of melodic shape. If you have introduced dynamics at this point, be sure that the students include dynamics in their compositions (and explain why... this should lead to further discussions of melodic shape).

As with Activity #3, let the students write melodies to previously written rhythmic figures at home (or in class). When they bring in their melodies, place them all in a bucket and select a few for use in class. You can also tell the kids that you will put ALL of the melodies into the bucket and that if they write more than one, there will be a better chance of using one of their melodies in class. This will provide a lot of excitement in your room. You'll find that not only do they want to have their work used in class, but that they will also work very hard to make sure that they melody sounds good.

How can my students possibly understand the "rules" involved in melodic writing?? Remember, I am suggesting this activity when your students have only learned two or three pitches. As they learn new pitches, allow them to include the new pitches in their compositions. Few of us introduce pitches through a chromatic sequence, so the students' melodies should alwaysat least sound ok.

As you can see, so far, no method book has been required... The students have written all of the needed exercises themselves. This has many benifits. First, the students will feel as if they "own" part of the class. Secondly, somewhere back in the depths of their minds, as little voice is saying "I am learning this on my own... maybe I can learn other things on my own... " If one of our goals is to create "life-long learners," this is a BIG step in the right direction.


Remember, if any of you have comments or questions, please post them. This blog is intended to give you ideas, but at the same time spark discussions.

Mr. K

Activity #3

Activity #3
This activity builds on the processes for Activities #1 and #2 and can be used again and again as your students learn new rhythmic concepts. Have the students write several rhythmic lines (about four measures each) at home. Collect them at the beginning of class (or you could set aside 15 minutes at the end of a class for the writing). The next day, have five or six of the students' lines selected for use in class. Assign a number to each line and write them separately on the board. Allow the class to select an order for the lines. For each decision, make the students explain WHY they feel that the lines should be in the chosen order. Clap the result. Repeat this several times so that the students can see the many possibilities. (It may be easier to write each line on a separate sheet of paper that can be moved around on the board.)

Once the class has seen several different possible orders, let them choose which order they like best. Again, make them explain WHY. Write this final decision on the board. Similarly to Activity #2, let the students write a new rhythmic line to accompany this. Assign sections of the class to each part and have the class clap both parts simutaneously. In order to keep the class interesting, once the students are comfortable with both parts, assign a different sound to each part (i.e. students playing the top line should clap while students playing the bottom line should stomp).

For the next couple of weeks, repeat this activity. Include more parts, make the parts longer, and assign REAL percussion instruments for each part. Again, SURPRISE, you really are writing simple percussion ensemble music now! This activity can be expanded over time so that your class is eventually writing worthwhile pieces that can (and should) be performed at your concerts. It will give your students a sense of accomplishment and they will have a REASON to learn rhythms.

In the Beginning

Teaching through composition is intended to be an ongoing project for your band (or other music class... In my case it is a band and I will use that term from here on). It should be benificial for students of all ages although beginning students may be more receptive to the beginning stages. Older or more experienced students may become bored since teaching through composition initially requires the use of simple musical concepts.

The first step is simple. The majority of us probably use clapping (or some related exercise) to help our students learn the basic concepts of rhythm. We begin by explaining the idea of the beat followed by quarter notes and rests. Or maybe you introduce half notes and whole notes before rests. At any rate, we usually help our students understand by writing a simple rhythmic passage and having our students clap it. Then maybe we write a variation or completely different pattern and the students then clap that pattern. This activity might continue for weeks (or months) until we are satisfied that our students "understand" rhythm only to find later that they knew less than we had expected.

Activiy #1
In order to give our students a reason to learn about rhythmic concepts, why not let them create the exercises? I know that in the very early stages we must do the writing (the students wouldn't know where to begin). However, after an teacher-created exercise or two, let the students take over. If only dealing with quarter notes and quarter rests, begin by placing a quater note on the staff. Then allow the class to decide what comes next... a note or a rest. The exercise then continues in the traditional way (students clap the rhythm).

Activity #2
Once you are satisfied that the students are comfortable with quarter notes and rests, the fun begins. This will probably occur during the first class period. Resist the urge to introduce new rhythmic values. Instead, introduce the idea of playing multiple parts. Follow the activity in the above paragraph (still using only quarter notes and rests). However, when they are ready to try a different pattern, write it under the one already on the board. You don't need to explain the reason for this, the students will just assume that you were too lazy to erase the old line. Follow the instructions for Activity #1 when writing this new line. Once the students are comfortable with the second line, divide the students into two groups. Assign each group to one of the lines and have the groups clap the lines simutaneously. (At this point you are thinking "Yeah, Yeah, I already do that. Why am I wasting my time reading this?" Remember, this is only the beginning.) As you students suggest notes or rests, ask them to explain why (THIS IS IMPORTANT!). At first you will probably have to help your students come up with an answer. Eventually your students will start to give more thoughtful answers for their decisions. This is very important because it helps your students in expressing htemselves as well as understanding the relationships between parts in music by other composers.

Activity #2 can be repeated (and should be) until you have several (about 4 or 5) different rhythmic lines being clapped at once. SURPRISE, you are teaching you students about rhythms while they are composing simple percussion ensemble music! Just remember to make the students explain their decisions.

This should be used daily (or as often as possible... remember that the students are LEARNING through the these activities). It will only take a few minutes of class once you and your students are used to the process.

As you progress through rhythmic ideas, be sure to only introduce one idea at a time so that you don't allow the students to become confused. Again, be patient. For each concept follow Activities #1 and #2 until you feel that they have MASTERED the concept, then and only then should you move to something new.

How you fit this into your schedule is up to you. My classes lasted 45 minutes and I saw my students daily. The first day I spend on quarter notes and rests. During the second day, I review and usually find that by the end of the day, they are ready for half notes. On the third day (as you would expect) I review and hopefully introduce whole notes. From there I begin teaching about the staff and pitches in preparation for "THE HORNS," but I still spend a substantial part of each day letting the students "compose simple percussion ensemble msuic." By the beginning of the third week of school (that's when my students get their instruments), the students are comfortable with rhythms that involved eighth notes as well as syncopated rhythms.

These activities work best for teaching beginners but can be implemented into upper level classes. You just have to let the students get used to your "new" strategy.

Please post you thoughts so that we can begin a discussion (of my ideas or your's... that's how WE learn)

Mr. K

Reasons/Philosophy

I won't bore you by posting my entire philosophy of music education here, but I will let you know that it hinges upon the idea that students (adults included) will learn what they need to learn. They must have a desire (maybe buried deep inside) to learn. In other subjects, teachers work to find activites that provide the students with a reason to learn the material. I mean a REAL reason, not the dreaded "It will be on the test." Unfortunately, many music educators expect their students to learn just because they will be preforming. Well that preformance IS a test. I understand that things are changing and I am by far not the first to realize that preparing for and emphasizing performances are essentially "teaching to the test."

The question is "What do I do about it?" "What REAL reason can I give my students to learn about music?"

The tool that I use with be explained (and revised) through the forthcoming entries of this blog.

Introduction

This blog will be an on-going project in which I will describe ideas and report on the results of activities that I try.

Some background info about me: I graduated from Appalachian State University in 2001. Following graduation, I taught middle school (6-8 grades) for 3.5 years. At that time, I decided to go back to school full-time at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to pursue a Master's Degree in Music Education. This decision required me to resign from my teaching position. At this time I am looking for a job once again teaching middle school band in North Carolina. Once I do find a job and resume teaching, I will report on the effectiveness of activities that I had not tried at my previous position.

I do not make any attempt to say that I know all of the answers (far from it). I am still a young teacher who gets these "crazy" ideas that someone else has already tried. I am also not trying to imply that ideas presented in this blog are all mine. Where appropriate I will reference articles and research finding. If you read a post and think "I do that (or a variation)," by all means comment and share your knowledge with others. This blog is intended for creating discussion and providing ideas for band directors (or other music teachers).

Enjoy,

Mr. K